AIR CONDITIONING IN INTERIOR DESIGN

Introduction to air conditioning with their applications Principles of comfort air conditioning System /types of air conditioning Components of air conditioning with their essentials

Window air conditioning, their function with usage

Split air conditioning Working of central air conditioning Ducting system in air conditioning, air distribution BY Ar. AMIT MEHTA

AIR CONDITIONING
When the temperature outside begins to climb, many people seek the cool comfort of indoor air conditioning. There are three main advantages to having air conditioning fitted in your home, office, workplace, shop or other leisure space, and these are: - The air conditioning system helps to maintain a comfortable temperature - Air conditioning provides fresh air for the buildings occupants - The air conditioning system can remove contaminants from the air, in particular, body odour.

An air conditioner is basically a refrigerator without the insulated box. It uses the evaporation of a refrigerant, like Freon, to provide cooling. The mechanics of the Freon evaporation cycle are the same in a refrigerator as in an air conditioner.

Types of Air Conditioners

As mentioned previously, there are two basic types of air conditionersroom air conditioners and central air conditioners. However, there are several different kinds within each type. Variations of room air conditioners are as follows: Window-mounted types are available for installation in single-and double-hung windows, as well as for horizontal sliding windows and even casement windows. Wall-mounted units use a sleeve to allow for through-the-wall mounting instead of window mounting. Free-standing portable units are easily moved on casters; some require temporary ducting to the outdoors.

Variations of central air conditioners are as follows: A single-package unit contains all the components and generally mounts through the wall or on the roof. Ducting to and from the unit conveys air to and from the rooms. This type is not commonly used in residential applications.

A split-system unit consists of indoor and outdoor sections. The indoor heat exchanger, or coil, mounts above the furnace, inside the ducting. The outdoor section consists of the remaining components, and the two sections are joined by refrigerant lines connecting the indoor coil to the refrigeration components in the outdoor section.
A mini-split unit is similar to a split-system but contains more than one indoor coil connected to one outdoor unit. Some mini-split units have as many as three indoor units. These units are ideal for homes with new additions, as there is no need for ductwork. The indoor section simply mounts on an inside wall, the ceiling or the floor. The outdoor and indoor units generally have a very slim profile compared to conventional splitsystems. The efficiency of mini-split units tends to be lower than other splitsystems, which needs to be taken into account when considering such a unit.

 A mini-duct unit is a central air conditioner where the indoor section is

installed in the attic, and air is distributed through plastic pipes in partition walls to outlets and inlets. These units can be retrofitted in homes with electric or hydraulic baseboard heating that have no ductwork.
Finally, water-cooled residential air conditioners can be connected to city or well water. Check with local authorities to determine if water-cooled equipment is permitted. These types are seldom used in Canadian applications, even if permitted, because operating costs would include electricity, as well as water and sewer charges.

COMPONENTS OF AN AIR CONDITIONER

The refrigerant is a substance that circulates through the air conditioner, alternately absorbing, transporting and releasing heat. A coil is a system of tubing loops through which refrigerant flows and where heat transfer takes place. The tubing may have fins to increase the surface area available for heat exchange. The evaporator is a coil that allows the refrigerant to absorb heat from its surroundings, causing the refrigerant to boil and become a low-temperature vapour. The compressor squeezes the molecules of the refrigerant gas together, increasing the pressure and temperature of the refrigerant. The condenser is a coil that allows the refrigerant gas to give off heat to its surroundings and become a liquid. The expansion device releases the pressure created by the compressor. This causes the temperature to drop and the refrigerant to become a lowtemperature vapour/liquid mixture.

Some Definitions
A Btu/h or British thermal unit per hour, is a measure of the heat output of a heating system. One Btu is the amount of heat energy given off by a typical birthday candle. If this heat energy were released over the course of one hour, it would be the equivalent of 1 Btu/h. A kW or kilowatt, is equal to 1000 watts. This is the amount of power required by ten 100-watt light bulbs. A ton is a measure of cooling capacity. It is equivalent to 3.5 kW or 12 000 Btu/h. The capacity of an air conditioner is a measure of the maximum rate at which it can remove heat from the conditioned space. Capacity is expressed in British thermal units per hour or tons and is determined under a specific set of best conditions. The cooling load also stated in British thermal units per hour, is the maximum amount of heat that builds up in a space without a cooling system operating. It is calculated to determine the capacity of air conditioner required.

Some Definitions
Heat gain is a term applied to various components of the heat load, such as appliance heat gain and solar heat gain. All of the heat gain components are summed to calculate the cooling load. Over sizing is the practice of selecting an air conditioner with a cooling capacity greater than the cooling load. Under sizing is the practice of selecting an air conditioner with a cooling capacity smaller than the cooling load.

The energy efficiency ratio (EER) is a measure of how much cooling effect is provided by the air conditioner for each unit of electrical energy that it consumes under steady-state operation. It is determined by dividing the cooling output of the unit, in British thermal units per hour, by the electrical power input, in watts, at a specific temperature. The higher the EER, the more efficient the unit.

WORKING
The Compressor compresses cool Freon gas, causing it to become hot, high-pressure Freon gas (red in the diagram above). This hot gas runs through a set of coils so it can dissipate its heat, and it condenses into a liquid.

The Freon liquid runs through an expansion valve, and in the process it evaporates to become cold, low-pressure Freon gas (light blue in the diagram above).
This cold gas runs through a set of coils that allow the gas to absorb heat and cool down the air inside the building.

Window and Split-system AC Units:

A window air conditioner unit implements a complete air conditioner in a small space. The units are made Small enough to fit into a standard window frame. You close the window down on the unit, plug it in and turn it on to get cool air. If you take the cover off of an unplugged window unit, you'll find that it contains: A compressor An expansion valve A hot coil (on the outside) A chilled coil (on the inside) Two fans A control unit

The fans blow air over the coils to improve their ability to dissipate heat (to the outside air) and cold (to the room being cooled). When you get into larger air-conditioning applications, its time to start looking at split-system units. A split-system air conditioner splits the hot side from the cold side of the system, as in the diagram. The cold side, consisting of the expansion valve and the cold coil, is generally placed into a furnace or some other air handler. The air handler blows air through the coil and routes the air throughout the building using a series of ducts. The hot side, known as the condensing unit, lives outside the building.

This approach has evolved over the years because it's low-cost, and also because it normally results in reduced noise inside the house (at the expense of increased noise outside the house) Other than the fact that the hot and cold sides are split apart and the capacity is higher (making the coils and compressor larger), there's no difference between a split-system and a window air conditioner.

Split Air Conditioner

The split air conditioner comprises of two parts: the outdoor unit and the indoor unit. The outdoor unit, fitted outside the room, houses components like the compressor, condenser and expansion valve. The indoor unit comprises the evaporator or cooling coil and the cooling fan. For this unit you dont have to make any slot in the wall of the room. Further, the present day split units have aesthetic looks and add to the beauty of the room. The split air conditioner can be used to cool one or two rooms.

Wall Mounted Indoor Unit It is the indoor unit that produces the cooling effect inside the room. The indoor unit of the split air conditioner is a box type housing in which all the important parts of the air conditioner are enclosed. The most common type of the indoor unit is the wall mounted type though other types like ceiling mounted and floor mounted are also used. We shall discuss all these types in separate articles, here we shall discuss the wall mounted type of the indoor unit.

These days the companies give utmost importance to the looks and aesthetics of the indoor unit. In the last couple few years the purpose of the indoor unit has changed from being a mere cooling effect producing devise to a beautiful looking cooling devise adding to the overall aesthetics of the room. This is one of the major reasons that the popularity of the split units has increased tremendously in the last few years.

The various parts enclosed inside the indoor unit of the split air conditioner:
1) Evaporator Coil or the Cooling Coil:
The cooling coil is a copper coil made of number turns of the copper tubing with one or more rows depending on the capacity of the air conditioning system. The cooling coil is covered with the aluminum fins so that the maximum amount of heat can be transferred from the coil to the air inside the room. The refrigerant from the tubing at very low temperature and very low pressure enters the cooling coil. The blower absorbs the hot room air or the atmospheric air and in doing so the air passes over the cooling coil which leads to the cooling of the air. This air is then blown to the room where the cooling effect has to be produced. The air, after producing the cooling effect is again sucked by the blower and the process of cooling the room continues. After absorbing the heat from the room air, the temperature of the refrigerant inside the cooling coil becomes high and it flows back through the return copper tubing to the compressor inside the outdoor unit. The refrigerant tubing supplying the refrigerant from the outdoor unit to the indoor unit and that supplying the refrigerant from indoor unit to the outdoor unit are both covered with the insulation tape.

2) Air Filter:
The air filter is very important part of the indoor unit. It removes all the dirt particles from the room air and helps supplying clean air to the room. The air filter in the wall mounted type of the indoor unit is placed just before the cooling coil. When the blower sucks the hot room air, it is first passed through the air filter and then though the cooling coil. Thus the clean air at low temperature is supplied into the room by the blower.

3) Cooling Fan or Blower:

Inside the indoor unit there is also a long blower that sucks the room air or the atmospheric air. It is an induced type of blower and while is sucks the room air it is passed over the cooling coil and the filter due to which the temperature of the air reduces and all the dirt from it is removed.

4) Drain Pipe:
Due to the low temperature refrigerant inside the cooling coil, its temperature is very low, usually much below the dew point temperature of the room air. When the room air is passed over the cooling due the suction force of the blower, the temperature of the air becomes very low and reaches levels below its dew point temperature. Due to this the water vapor present in the air gets condensed and dew or water drops are formed on the surface of the cooling coil. These water drops fall off the cooling coil and are collected in a small space inside the indoor unit.

5) Louvers or Fins:
The cool air supplied by the blower is passed into the room through louvers. The louvers help changing the angle or direction in which the air needs to be supplied into the room as per the requirements. With louvers one easily change the direction in which the maximum amount of the cooled air has to be passed.

Location of the Indoor and the Outdoor Units

The first step in the installation of split AC is deciding the location of the indoor and the outdoor units, only then the next important steps of the installation can be initiated. Let us the see the factors to be considered when deciding the location of these unit (see the images below):

1) Indoor Unit:
Here are the important suggestions when deciding the location of indoor unit inside the room: The indoor unit is located inside the room at the location from where the air can be distributed evenly throughout the room. As far as possible the indoor should be installed above the bed so that the maximum cooling effect can be obtained. It should be located directly above the bed. If one has to avoid the direct flow of chilled air on the body, one can always change the direction of the louvers. The indoor unit can also be installed on wall towards your feet though it can be installed on other side walls also. The wall mounted indoor unit should be located at the height of about 8 to 10 feet from the floor so that that most of the chilled air is used for cooling the room and not merely for cooling the hot roof. The indoor unit should be accessible easily so that one can conveniently clean the filter every fortnight and the whole unit and also that one can manually change the position of the louvers easily. If the indoor unit is installed above certain window, make sure that it is in symmetry with the window, else the unit will look shabby. The indoor unit is meant to add to the aesthetics of the room and not destroy it.

2) Outdoor

Unit:

Here are some points to consider when deciding the location of the outdoor unit: The outdoor unit should be located in the open space preferably on the terrace so that the air can flow freely over the compressor and the condenser. If the terrace is not available it can be kept on the awning above the wall or it can be hanged on the external wall supported by the angles. The location of outdoor unit should be such that it is easily accessible for carrying out the maintenance works of the compressor, condenser, and other devices. The installation and gas charging also should be convenient. There should not be any hindrances in front of the outdoor that would block the passage of fan air from passing to the open space. Any blockages will seriously affect the performance of the AC and can also lead to the burning of hermetically sealed compressor coil.

The surface on which the outdoor unit is to be installed should be rigid enough to avoid its vibration. The vibration of the outdoor unit will raise excessive noise and also lead to the breaking of the copper tubing and leakage of the refrigerant.
It is always advisable to keep the outdoor unit at the height above the indoor unit. If the outdoor unit is kept at level below the indoor, some of the compressor power is used in pumping the refrigerant against the gravity, thus reducing the overall performance of the compressor. Most of the outdoor units are quite silent so one does not have to worry about their noise. The internal parts of the outdoor unit are shielded against the rain and sun rays, so one can rest assured about their safety in different climatic conditions. The refrigerant at very low temperature flows inside the tubing between indoor and the outdoor unit, and there is always some loss of refrigerant effect to the atmosphere from these tubing, hence the distance between the indoor and the outdoor unit should be kept as minimum as possible to reduce the loss of the cooling effect. The maximum distance between the indoor and the outdoor units can be about 15 meters.

Central Air Conditioning

Central air conditioning, commonly referred to as central air (U.S.) or air-con (UK), is an air conditioning system that uses ducts to distribute cooled and/or dehumidified air to more than one room, or uses pipes to distribute chilled water to heat exchangers in more than one room, and which is not plugged into a standard electrical outlet. With a typical split system, the condenser and compressor are located in an outdoor unit; the evaporator is mounted in the air handler unit. With a package system, all components are located in a single outdoor unit that may be located on the ground or roof.

Central air conditioning performs like a regular air conditioner but has several added benefits:

When the air handling unit turns on, room air is drawn in from various parts of the building through return-air ducts. This air is pulled through a filter where airborne particles such as dust and lint are removed. Sophisticated filters may remove microscopic pollutants as well. The filtered air is routed to air supply ductwork that carries it back to rooms. Whenever the air conditioner is running, this cycle repeats continually. Because the condenser unit (with its fan and the compressor) is located outside the home, it offers a lower level of indoor noise than a free-standing air conditioning unit

Central air conditioning plants are used for applications like big hotels, large buildings having multiple floors, hospitals, etc, where very high cooling loads are required If the whole building is to be cooled it is not economically viable to put window or split air conditioner in each and every room. Further, these small units cannot satisfactorily cool the large halls, auditoriums, receptions areas etc.
The central air conditioning systems are highly sophisticated applications of the air conditioning systems and many a times they tend to be complicated. It is due to this reason that there are very few companies in the world that specialize in these systems. In the modern era of computerization a number of additional electronic utilities have been added to the central conditioning systems.

In the central air conditioning systems there is a plant room where large compressor, condenser, thermostatic expansion valve and the evaporator are kept in the large plant room. They perform all the functions as usual similar to a typical refrigeration system. However, all these parts are larger in size and have higher capacities. The compressor is of open reciprocating type with multiple cylinders and is cooled by the water just like the automobile engine. The compressor and the condenser are of shell and tube type. While in the small air conditioning system capillary is used as the expansion valve, in the central air conditioning systems thermostatic expansion valve is used. The chilled is passed via the ducts to all the rooms, halls and other spaces that are to be air conditioned.

Thus in all the rooms there is only the duct passing the chilled air and there are no individual cooling coils, and other parts of the refrigeration system in the rooms. What is we get in each room is the completely silent and highly effective air conditions system in the room. Further, the amount of chilled air that is needed in the room can be controlled by the openings depending on the total heat load inside the room.

There are two types of central air conditioning plants or systems: 1) Direct expansion or DX central air conditioning plant: In this system the huge compressor, and the condenser are housed in the plant room, while the expansion valve and the evaporator or the cooling coil and the air handling unit are housed in separate room. The cooling coil is fixed in the air handling unit, which also has large blower housed in it. The blower sucks the hot return air from the room via ducts and blows it over the cooling coil. The cooled air is then supplied through various ducts and into the spaces which are to be cooled. This type of system is useful for small buildings.

2) Chilled water central air conditioning plant: This type of system is more useful for large buildings comprising of a number of floors. It has the plant room where all the important units like the compressor, condenser, throttling valve and the evaporator are housed. The evaporator is a shell and tube. On the tube side the Freon fluid passes at extremely low temperature, while on the shell side the brine solution is passed. After passing through the evaporator, the brine solution gets chilled and is pumped to the various air handling units installed at different floors of the building. The air handling units comprise the cooling coil through which the chilled brine flows, and the blower. The blower sucks hot return air from the room via ducts and blows it over the cooling coil. The cool air is then supplied to the space to be cooled through the ducts. The brine solution which has absorbed the room heat comes back to the evaporator, gets chilled and is again pumped back to the air handling unit.

Similarities of Air Conditioning with Human Body system

Duct design and installation: Efficient and well-designed duct systems distribute air properly throughout your home without leaking to keep all rooms at a comfortable temperature. The system should provide balanced supply and return flow to maintain a neutral pressure within the house. Since even well-sealed and insulated ducts will leak and lose some heat, many new energy-efficient homes place the duct system within the conditioned space of the home. The simplest way to accomplish this is to hide the ducts in dropped ceilings and in corners of rooms. Ducts can also be located in a sealed and insulated chase extending into the attic or built into raised floors. In both of these latter cases, care must be taken during construction to prevent contractors from using the duct chases for wiring or other utilities.

Ducts located within the conditioned space avoid the energy losses associated with most duct systems. In either case, actual ducts must be used: chases and floor cavities should not be used as ducts. Regardless of where they are installed, ducts should be well sealed Materials Ducts can be made out of the following materials: Galvanised mild steel is the standard and most common material use in fabriacting Ductwork

Although ducts can be configured in a number of ways, the "trunk and branch" and "radial" supply duct configurations are most suitable for ducts located in conditioned spaces. "Trunk and branch" and "radial" configurations of supply ducts are most suitable for incorporating within the conditioned space of a home.

Duct system components Besides the ducts themselves, complete ducting systems contain many other components. Vibration isolators A duct system often begins at an air handler. The blowers in the air handlers can create substantial vibration and the large area of the duct system would transmit this noise and vibration to the inhabitants of the building. To avoid this, vibration isolators (flexible sections) are normally inserted into the duct immediately before and after the air handler. The rubberized canvas-like material of these sections allow the air handler to vibrate without transmitting much vibration to the attached ducts. .

Plenums Plenums are the central distribution and collection units for an HVAC system. The return plenum carries the air from several large return grills (vents) to a central air handler. The supply plenum directs air from the central unit to the rooms which the system is designed to heat or cool.